Vivid Starscapes from Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Parks

To escape light pollution and shoot beautiful starscapes, Gavin Heffernan recently visited two National Parks in central California, Sequoia and Kings Canyon, which have a combined size of about 3,500 square kilometers. With so much space, the view of the stars was stunning.

“It was undoubtedly one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever seen, with incredible canyons, mountains, and vistas out of a fantasy novel,” Gavin says. “Far removed from any light pollution, the skies were equally stunning, with some epic milky ways, star trails, and the biggest meteorite picture I’ve ever captured.” The resulting time-lapse, ‘KINGS’, shows some of this vivid scenery.

Hiking through National Parks during the evening and night also led to some unforgettable experiences with wildlife, including a close encounter with a brown bear. Luckily, Gavin was hiking and shooting with another photographer, John C. Brookins, who captured all their experiences in his own video, called ‘Starchasers’. This behind-the-scenes footage is perhaps even more interesting than the time-lapses, as it reveals the sweat, struggle, and fun they had as night photographers, venturing out into the wild.

For the star chasers and mosquitoes. Mosquitoes do not like the scent of vanilla. So it would be a good thing to be liberal with pure vanilla around face, ears, edges of clothing where mosquitoes can get in. I enjoyed the film clip. Beautiful pictures.